Practical nurse vs professional nursing assistant

The differences between practical nurses and professional nursing assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a practical nurse, becoming a professional nursing assistant takes usually requires 1-3 months. Additionally, a practical nurse has an average salary of $75,363, which is higher than the $44,336 average annual salary of a professional nursing assistant.

The top three skills for a practical nurse include patients, APN and home health. The most important skills for a professional nursing assistant are vital signs, PNA, and patient care.

Practical nurse vs professional nursing assistant overview

	Practical Nurse	Professional Nursing Assistant
Yearly salary	$75,363	$44,336
Hourly rate	$36.23	$21.32
Growth rate	6%	9%
Number of jobs	511,602	131,582
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Average age	46	42
Years of experience	2	3

Practical nurse vs professional nursing assistant salary

Practical nurses and professional nursing assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Practical Nurse	Professional Nursing Assistant
Average salary	$75,363	$44,336
Salary range	Between $47,000 And $120,000	Between $28,000 And $69,000
Highest paying City	Lancaster, CA	-
Highest paying state	California	-
Best paying company	University Hospitals	-
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between practical nurse and professional nursing assistant education

There are a few differences between a practical nurse and a professional nursing assistant in terms of educational background:

	Practical Nurse	Professional Nursing Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	Emory University	-

Practical nurse vs professional nursing assistant demographics

Here are the differences between practical nurses' and professional nursing assistants' demographics:

	Practical Nurse	Professional Nursing Assistant
Average age	46	42
Gender ratio	Male, 14.3% Female, 85.7%	Male, 26.2% Female, 73.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 15.8% Asian, 6.3% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 7.1% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between practical nurse and professional nursing assistant duties and responsibilities

Practical nurse example responsibilities.

Manage surgical recovery patients including vascular, ENT, GI urological and neurological cases, coronary bypass surgery patients.
Treat patients with dignity, respect, and compassion while maintaining there safety.
Maintain safety and quality standards of care while facilitating early discharge of mother and baby.
Maintain HIPPA and OSHA guidelines.
Receive and implementing Dr orders.
Train in lactation and NRP certify.

Professional nursing assistant example responsibilities.

Initiate cardiopulmonary resuscitation in emergency situations.
Cycle through all areas of perioperative care, including pediatric and adult pre-op and post-op, and the short stay unit.
Provide behavioral/emotional support and supervision for those with dementia and Alzheimer's.

Practical nurse vs professional nursing assistant skills

Common practical nurse skills

Patients, 27%
APN, 7%
Home Health, 6%
Acute Care, 5%
Physical Examinations, 4%
Vital Signs, 4%

Common professional nursing assistant skills

Vital Signs, 41%
PNA, 13%
Patient Care, 10%
Administer Medications, 9%
ADL, 8%
Mental Health, 7%

Practical Nurse vs. similar jobs

Practical Nurse related careers

Practical Nurse related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Practical Nurse
Practical Nurse vs Professional Nursing Assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs